(Silverjohn/iStock/Getty Images)

B.C. grants late AgriStability enrolment for 2018

Fire, flooding and a drop in raspberry prices in 2018 have spurred the federal and British Columbia governments to trigger the AgriStability late-participation mechanism. Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau and her provincial counterpart Lana Popham, at an event Monday in Vernon, B.C., invoked the new late-participation rule for the 2018 AgriStability program year, “to help farmers […] Read more

Four ways to help protect your farm from fire

Four ways to help protect your farm from fire

Whether it’s close to home or across an ocean, fire hasn’t been far from the news this summer. This year has been average in terms of fire risk on the Prairies, says Mike Flannigan, professor of wildland fire and the director of the western partnership for wildland fire science at the University of Alberta. But[...]
Read more


(BC.RCMP-grc.gc.ca)

AgriRecovery offered for B.C. wildfire costs

British Columbia ranchers and farmers who lost pasture or cropland or had to move livestock out of the path of wildfires this year may be eligible for AgriRecovery funding. The federal and B.C. governments on Thursday announced a new AgriRecovery program worth up to $5 million to help defray “extraordinary costs incurred” due to wildfires[...]
Read more

(Dal.ca/agriculture)

Fire shutters Dalhousie ag campus’ main building

The Cox Institute, the main building on Dalhousie University’s agricultural campus, has been closed down by a Wednesday night fire believed to have caused substantial damage. No one was reported to be injured in the fire, the Nova Scotia university said via Twitter. According to local media the fire broke out Wednesday evening in the[...]
Read more


Latest Alberta wildfire info available at one website

Reading Time: < 1 minute Alberta Agriculture and Forestry has a dedicated website with news and information on wildfires. The Alberta Wildfire website has a Wildfire Status map that is updated throughout the day and provides an overall look at the current wildfire situation across the province. The map also includes links to updates from the province’s 10 forest areas.[...]
Read more

Losses from a barn or equipment shed fire can easily total hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars.

Safeguard your farm buildings against fire

Emergency plans and regular inspections are key to preventing devastating losses, says expert

Reading Time: 4 minutes Although there are arguably fewer barn and shed fires on farms these days, the ones that do happen are often far more costly. Fortunately, there are also more tools available today to prevent fires. Fire prevention comes down to having a plan, choosing proper materials, and having regular inspections by a licensed electrician, said Dan[...]
Read more


High fire risk means burning unharvested crops should be a ‘last resort’

High fire risk means burning unharvested crops should be a ‘last resort’

Extension specialist says cereal crops may have more value than expected, and a ‘normal’ spring looks likely

Reading Time: 4 minutes For Clair Langlois, burning unharvested cereal crops this spring should be “a last resort.” “It is quick, but it’s very risky,” said the provincial cereal extension specialist. “With Slave Lake followed by Fort McMurray, a lot of these municipalities are not tickled pink about burning. “So you’ve got to have a Plan B ready to[...]
Read more

The 2017 fire season has begun

The 2017 fire season has begun

Reading Time: < 1 minute The wildfire season begins March 1 and the province is warning Albertans to be extra careful to help prevent wildfires in forested areas. More than 60 per cent of the wildfires last year were caused by human activity. Last year, 1,338 wildfires burned more than 611,000 hectares, including the Horse River wildfire that spread into[...]
Read more